Hoboken receives $11.7 million Sandy relief loan for wet weather pump

The city of Hoboken will receive an $11.7 million loan for a new wet weather pump station that will alleviate by helping prevent rain water and storm surge from entering the city's sewer system.

The funds are part of a $1.28 billion state financing package approved today by Gov. Chris Christie for waste and drinking water infrastructure projects throughout the state. The legislation provides no-cost and low-cost loans through the New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Trust (NJEIT), an independent state financing agency.

The pump (H5) will be built on the north end of Hoboken near 11th Street and Frank Sinatra Drive North, Zimmer said, adding that a start date for the project is unknown.

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Press Officer Bob Considine said the station will include the wet weather pump station, an electrical room and a standby generator to serve the H5 drainage basin.

H5 will be "equipped with two 41 MGD submersible pumps that will discharge into 30-inch diameter force mains," added Considine. "The facility will be equipped with automatic standby electric power generation facilities in case of power outage."

Zimmer said she is "extremely pleased that this is something approved by the state."

When the first pump was built, Zimmer, then a city councilwoman, said four pumps were necessary to protect the city.

"It is possible that we'll only need two pumps," she said today. "We know we definitely need a second pump."

The pump is part of the overall Rebuild by Design plan, which works in four parts: "to resist water, delay water, store water and discharge water," Zimmer said.

When Hoboken experiences flooding from heavy rains, storm surges or rising sea level, the pumps help delay water from entering the sewage system.

Zimmer added the city is looking to purchase a few properties as part of the storage aspect, particularly a property in northwest Hoboken to provide a 10 million gallon tank storage.

Superstorm Sandy caused an estimated $2.6 billion in damages to waste water and drinking water infrastructure across the state, affecting some 3.5 million residents.

In addition, 427 of 604 community water supply systems in the state lost power during the storm. Of these, 70 were seriously affected by prolonged power loss. Thirty-five systems serving more than 360,000 people were subject to boil water advisories due to concerns about contamination of their supplies.

"There can be no compromises in protecting the viability, integrity and resiliency of the state's water-supply and wastewater systems, especially in areas that are vulnerable to floods," Christie said in a press release announcing the legislation.

"This infrastructure must be rigorously maintained to ensure protection of public health and the environment. This legislation is an investment in the health of our environment, the quality of our drinking water, our quality of life, our economy – and New Jersey's future.''

The Sandy-related projects to be financed in this round of funding include a host of resiliency measures such as construction of flood walls to protect facilities, relocation of infrastructure to safer ground, restoration of damaged facilities, emergency generators and even portable pumping stations that can be removed before a storm hits and be put back afterward.